


the grounding of a foot

by eclipsecard



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: Alternate Canon, Gen, Not Canon Compliant, Suicide Attempt, aka Kaito and Asuka talk Dennis down from carding himself, an alternate end to 114 because the canon one made me sad, gongenzaka/dennis if you squint but i didnt wanna tag it just in case
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-31
Updated: 2019-07-31
Packaged: 2020-07-28 03:11:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20057080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eclipsecard/pseuds/eclipsecard
Summary: He hears people scream his name, but he can’t be bothered to acknowledge it. He steps backward, with one foot over the edge.He doesn’t fall. He doesn’t even leave the ground. Confused, and somewhat aggravated, he opens his eyes.





	the grounding of a foot

He lost.

He stares up at the sky, laying on his back on the deck of the ship that was supposed to be going to Academia. He’d challenged Yusho to a duel, but Kaito had stepped in - he was sure he could beat that XYZ scum, he had every last bit of that Duel planned out. Up until Kaito pulled out that godforsaken Little Fairy card, of course.

He failed. He’s a failure.

It’s Yusho himself who begins clapping first. When the rest of the ship joins in, Dennis closes his eyes and pretends he can’t hear. He hates the reminder that he lost to an XYZ - the shame manifests in the form of a pit in his stomach. He feels sick, he hates himself - he can’t dare show his face at Academia now-

“What are you doing?” A voice interrupts Dennis’s thoughts, and he opens his eyes to look up at whoever spoke. He sees Yusho Sakaki, standing over him with a confused look on his face. “If you don’t acknowledge the applause, you’ll offend the audience.” He says, and those words make Dennis’s stomach turn. His teacher is still such an optimist.

“Applause is for the victor. It isn’t for losers like me.” He replies blankly, sitting up. He can’t even look Yusho in the eye. He feels ashamed. He doesn’t want anyone to look at him.

Yusho sighs, shaking his head. “Goodness me…” His voice sounds distant for a second, and he’s lost in thought. He takes a moment before he speaks again. “You didn’t really lose, you know. That applause is for both you and Kaito. Both of you brought smiles to all these people. It was a brilliant show,” Yushou sweeps his free hand over the crowd behind them, and all the smiling people look back at them both. All those eyes on him makes Dennis feel even worse. All those people watched him fail.

Dennis finally looks back up at him. Doesn’t he get it? Losers don’t deserve recognition or appreciation. He can feel tears burning his eyes, and he blinks them back, but they just start rolling down his cheeks instead. He opens his mouth to speak, but Yusho continues first.

“Come with me.” Yusho says, holding a gloved hand out in front of Dennis’s face, and he backs away from it just a bit. “I’m sure you can make even more people smile with your Duels, Dennis.”

He hangs his head, and tries to pretend he’s anywhere but here--

An image of the Lancers pops into his head instead. When he shakes that off, he’s reminded of the street duel he and Gongenzaka put on for the children in the Synchro Dimension.

Gongenzaka…

“You can change Academia.”

It takes Dennis a moment to realize it was Yusho who spoke, and not Gongenzaka. Changing Academia? Is he insane? He’s not like Edo, he can’t just turn away from Academia! And he can’t go back to the Lancers, they all must hate him. He has no way out. There’s nothing else he can do, besides…

He doesn’t think before he flips to his feet, meeting Yusho’s eyes. Kaito and Asuka look at him as well, and their concerned frowns make going through with his plan hurt a lot more than it was already going to.

But they don’t know him. They don’t know the real Dennis. They’ve seen a facade, a persona fabricated for the entertainment of those who watched him Duel. That was just the life he lead as an Academia spy. There was no other way. There still is no other way. 

“I can’t do that.” He says, his tone void of emotion. Asuka and Kaito seem shocked that he denied his teacher’s proposal. Yusho seems almost sad. “I betrayed Yuya and Kurosaki. I can’t return to them now.” He starts backing away, toward the edge of the ship. He adjusts his Duel Disk on its arm, so that the screen is facing him.

It’ll be over soon.

No one moves. They seem too shocked to. Good. Less chance of them stopping him.

“Don’t panic!” He smiles, almost reverting to that entertainer persona once again. He feels himself slipping back into it - might as well put on one last show. A magic trick, for his final performance. “I’ll tell you where the girls are. Ruri, and the one named Rin.”

“Rin… The one Yugo is looking for?” Asuka speaks up, confused. Dennis nods in confirmation.

“They’re in Academia’s towers! Rin is in the east tower, and Ruri is in the west tower!” He sees Kaito visibly relax at the notion that Ruri is okay. He’s glad. He wanted to ease their worries a little bit. That was the least he could do for these people - give them a sense of hope. A farewell gift, perhaps. 

“Now, I can’t go back to Academia. I’ve spilled the Professor’s greatest secret, after all!” He holds his Duel Disk up to his face, flashing a smile to the crowd. “I’ll be praying that you save those girls. Oh, and, when you see him… please, tell Yuya that I enjoyed my time with the Lancers.” He feels the tears rolling down his cheeks again, but he keeps smiling. He closes his eyes, and starts leaning back, getting ready to press the button on his Duel Disk. He’ll be free soon. “An illusion, my final bit of entertainment! Watch, as I turn into a card!”

He hears people scream his name, but he can’t be bothered to acknowledge it. He steps backward, with one foot over the edge.

He doesn’t fall. He doesn’t even leave the ground. Confused, and somewhat aggravated, he opens his eyes.

Kaito and Asuka are holding both of his wrists.

His eyes meet Asuka’s first, and then Kaito’s. They’re both shaking, and Kaito is crying. Asuka looks like she might start.

Dennis doesn’t know what he’s feeling. Is it remorse? Embarrassment, even? “Wh… What are you doing?” He looks at them both. “Why didn’t you just let me fall?”

“I’m tired of watching people die.” Asuka speaks first, and her voice is shaky. “Time and time again I’ve seen people get turned into cards, and I’ve been powerless to stop them. Friends, allies, family. I don’t care where you come from, I don’t care what your past is like. Let us help,” She pleads, and her voice cracks. She finally lets her tears spill, shoulders shaking with every breath she takes.

“Edo could change. There were countless Academia soldiers who followed in his footsteps. I watched them all give up Academia’s teachings in the blink of an eye. If they could change and redeem themselves without death, so can you. Let us save you from yourself.” Kaito follows up, and Dennis notes that he hears much more emotion in his voice now than he did during their Duel.

Why do these people care…?

They don’t let him respond to them before they tug him back onto the ship. Asuka promptly slips Dennis’s Duel Disk off of his arm, tossing it to Yusho. He opens his mouth to protest, before Kaito casts him a look that tells him that he wouldn’t be getting the Duel Disk back, no matter how nicely he asked. 

They both lead him further from the edge, both keeping one hand on his lower back. He feels… at peace, somewhat.

“You can tell Yuya yourself.” Kaito says, looking over at him.

Dennis looks back. “Tell him what?” He raises a brow.

“That you enjoyed your time with the Lancers. Let him hear it for himself, when you see him again.” He clarifies, with a curt nod.

...Huh. Dennis nods. He likes the idea of that.

**Author's Note:**

> episode 114 destroyed me that i spent an hour writing this fic not even 5 minutes after watching hfghf. i'm @seraphcard on tumblr and my asks and messages are always open if u wanna have A Discussion About Dennis or just arc-v in general


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